He took a sip of the beer and leaned back on her bed.  "I did not know where the rec dec is, but I knew Hunter had some single malt scotch and I thought he might be down here."  He set down the beer on the end table.  "I did not knock on doors.  I just sort of knew you were here."  He shrugged and looked around the room taking in the decorations.  "I will remember vodka next time.  Where I grew up though, beer was the drink of choice."  He smiled and shrugged.

He picked up his beer, taking another drink.  "Today was a fucking mess."  He said slowly.  "Trial by fire, eh?"  He said slowly and looked at Irina, his soft eyes fixing on hers.  He could tell she was still in a state of upset, and he worried he would set off her defenses.

In reply to Justice Lanceheart (msg # 101):

Hunters name is on his door

The room was adorn with a multitude of posters. A handful where for bands, or motivational phrases. Most where just large pieces of paper with all manner of drawings done in thick black lines. One was of a fire breathing dragoon. Another was the globe, and anchor of the ESN marines. While off in a corner Justice spotted the angel that always adored the chest plate of Irina's armor. On the rooms sole desk lay a sketch pad, and a few sharpies. Besides that there was just the piles of combat gear, and clothing that littered the room. Whether that was the normal state of affairs, or just a post combat thing was hard to say.

"Just sort of knew I was here," Irina said echoing Justices earlier words. She fixed him with a look that matched her mocking tone, "That doesn't make you sound like a stalker at all."

Justices comment about the mission evoke a sigh out of the marine. She leaned forward, and her shoulders sagged. "Da, was real shit storm today. Not fun way to start with new team I imagine," She said as she tossed another empty can into the corner. This time she stood, and fetched the next beer herself. "So was this your first time in combat? You seemed pretty shock up on the shuttle ride back" Irina asked before taking a drink for the new beer.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:24, Tue 06 Aug 2013.

He took a drink.  "No, but it was my first time meeting a demon mind."  He said slowly.  "I am not a stalker, but, feeling, thoughts, they come from people all the time.  Sometime I have to actually work to filter them out."  He leaned forward looking at her.  "I fucked up, took on a mind better than my own.  I am lucky I made it out alive."

He frowned looking at his drink.  "It is humbling to know a Wisp put me in my place, almost ripped me from my sanity.  I thought I was able to get some Intel from him for the effort, but…"  He made a motion like his head was blowing up with his hand.  "…poof, all gone.  I could not even keep it in my head.  I blacked out and woke up in the civilian section of the ship.  I do not know how I got there.  How long I had been out."

Irina's eyes grew wide as Justice talked. When he was done she simple chugged what was left of her can, grabbed another, and shambled back to her chair. She sat there regarding Justice for a minute, or so. Finally she looked down at her beer, and sighed. "I can kill people with my bare hands," Irina declared in a matter of fact tone. "That wasn't something I was taught. I learned it on my own, one fight at a time. I got the shit kicked out of me more times then I care to remember. Along the way I picked up a few things. I learned how to take a hit, and keep going. I learned what it takes to break another persons bone. That's not the kind of stuff they can teach you on a mat." She paused to take a sip of her beer. Irina looked up, and locked eyes with Justice.

"I don't know what your training was like to learn," Irina hesitated, and shook her head, "Telepathy. Today though for the first time you faced an alien mind while lives, your own among them, hung in the balance. So you got the shit kicked out of you. So? As I see it you can feel bad about it, or grow a fucking pair. Your still alive, and you would be an idiot to underestimate the importance of that. What is done is behind you. You have to focus on how to avoid same mistakes, Da? That will make you truly dangerous." Irina said as she leaned back.

With that she let the room fall into silence while she tried, and failed, to avoid fidgeting. Finally she leaned forward, and said, "Fuck it, I've got to ask. What exactly is it you have to 'tune out?' Are we talking me craving a cigarette, or is it deeper stuff?"

He took a deep breath.  "You are right, the mistake the creature made was letting me live.  He should have crushed me when he had the chance."  He finished his beer and opened another.  "But, problem is, you can head down to the gym and train, for me, to work out, to train in this sort of fight, I need someone who can fight like me."  He drank his beer.

He moved to the edge of the bed and looked at Irina.  "Well, if people have strong feelings, strong emotions, I start to pick things up.  How they feel, what they feel, stray thought s that are powerful."  He shrugged.  "Now you want to know if I can know what you are feeling and thinking and you are worried I would know something you don’t want me to know."  He took a drink and looked at her with a shrug.

Irina shrugged, "Da this is true. Until we get another mind reader though, there isn't anything we can do about that is there? You'll just have to use time honored tradition of running away when things get bad."

Richard explination on his ability caused Irina stared down her nose at him. "Ah yes, and you really had to be a mind reader to pick up on that one." She began. "It's less you learning something you shouldn't, and more about me know my privacy is going to be respected. I'm sure you've had this conversation a dozen times, and it always ends with you saying 'oh don't worry I won't do that.' You also brought me beer, and while your timing could have been better, this makes you okay in my book. But I'm one of those people who prefers to judge a person by their actions, and not just what they say. So you'll excuse me if I don't warm to the idea of you in being able to read minds all that fast."

In the silence that followed Irina sipped her beer awkwardly. "So did I miss anything interesting at the debrief?" Irina asked in a blatant attempt to change subjects.

"Well, they suspected it was a failure, Spencer felt we lost too many people."  He took a long drink.  "I suspect that the deaths were unavoidable.  I mean, we could not expect to have any loss."  He looked down.  "Is that cold of me?  I do not mean to say it was not bad, but, we did something no one else had done, so what did they expect?"

He stopped there and stood starting to pace.  "We need to practice more, to drill more."  He shrugged.  "I suspect we need better communication.  Better procedures, and focus on what needs doing when."  He drank the beer between breaths.  "We decided to hook to the bridge after we launched, we were winging it most of the way as we took the ship, and I think we need to not do that again."  He looked at Irina.  "I do not know how to bring this stuff up with Spencer, but I take it we are moving forward with the assault."

"We lost to many people not achieving out mission objectives," Irina said quietly, as she closed her eyes. "The Sarge always takes losses personal. It's one of the reason's he's a good leader. He isn't in a rush to waste our lives. We board the Verg to take her. Not smash a few controls, and then run away. So I agree that we failed."

Irina got up, and rummaged around until she found her smokes. "It's not cold to say we have to spill blood to do what we do. It's a fact we have to live with," She continued as she light up. As she talked Irina picked up another beer, and returned to her seat. "I just prefer making the other guys spill their blood. For the record this isn't the first boarding action the Hermes has committed to. Her first mission was to recover some diplomats off a Demon destroy that was lurking around Jupiter. They pulled that off smoothly form what I've heard."

"Of course they knew they were going into a boarding action. I really don't know what Hack was thinking pulling a stunt like that on us," She said shaking her head. "While I have yet to meet a plan that actually survived contact with the enemy, I completely agree with you. We definitely wound up throwing things together last minute. There are some things I would definitely do different next time. I mean if I'd had a fucking flame thrower..." Irina tapered off as she just stared angrily at the bulk head. Eventually she sighed, and stubbed out her cigarette. "As for the training bit. Yeah we could always use more, but the war wont always wait for us." She said with a shrug.

"Look if you're worried about talking to Spencer, don't be. He wont bite of your head unless you really give him reason to. If you want thought we can hash out a few ideas, and bring them to him together. I'm interested in hearing what you would do differently. You have any specifics, or just concepts?" Irina asked as she sipped her beer.

"That, and moving forward with what assault?" She asked.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:36, Fri 16 Aug 2013.

He nodded.  "Boarding, yes, we have done that before.  What I mean however, this is the first time we have come into Demon territory, the first time anyone assaulted them in their house."  He pointed out.  "I do not think even the Angels have done this, or approve of it."

He chugged a bit of his beer.  "I was the one who let us down on the Verge.  I got caught in that Wisp’s mind, I did not shut down the necessary systems."  He took another drink and sighed leaning back.  "When I was a kid, my mom and I would go on these ghost hunts.  I always wondered what it was we were picking up with our devices."  He looked at Irina.  "I was born a Catholic, but went to church only two times a year, Christmas and Easter.  Never really held to God and such."  He looked down at the beer, looking into the can.  "If these are really Angels, and they are Really demons, then who is God and Who is Satan?"  He asked looking up at her.

"I know you're really into this beating yourself up thing, but it wasn't just your fuck up that lost us the Verge," Irina said as she rolled her eyes, before continuing. "It's a bad plan that can't tolerate a single failure. I'm a marine. We adapt, and over come. We don't just give up when plan A doesn't go according to plan. I mean what if you had been shot? Sitting here looking back I can tell you all the things we should have done differently. First we should have let the bridge depressurize, and then blown every pressure door in sight. That would have killed the Wisp. Which in turn would have left you with all the time in the universe to vent the rest of the ship. I could have found, and blown the power to the gav plating. That would have given us a real leg up. Hell the engineering team could have just smashed the reactor. Without power we could have taken our sweet time clearing the Verge. We work as a team. As we share in our victories, so to should we share in our defeats." She said firmly before leaning back, and drinking her beer while Justice continued.

"The Angels are anything, but their namesake," Irina declared with vehemence, as she hurled another empty can at the corner. "Some of them are okay, like commander Si. Most of them though are little more then pompous arrogant assholes. Trust me. Which is exactly why they would take the name Angel. So don't let the likes of them start you down some bullshit existential crisis."

"Look I'm not the religious type. Maybe there is god, maybe there isn't. What I know is Earth has never been a paradise. We've had our share of problems: Wars, Corruption, Oppression. Turns out the galaxy is at least as crazy, probably more. Really this should not be a surprise," Irina said with a shrug before standing to fetch another beer. As she walked towards the beer Lanceheart could the see the affects of alcohol in her motions. She picked another beer out of the dwindling pile, and turned to regard the man sitting on her bed. "Move over a bit would you," She said before she stretched out on the matters.

He listened and nursed his beer as she spoke.  She was right, he could not beat himself up.  As she recounted the events it felt like something was wrong, something about what happened on the Verge was not right.  There was something important.  There was a sharp pain that lanced through his head, like before at the debriefing.  He pinched the bridge of his nose.

He moved over to let her have a seat next to him.  "I might need to take a few days off of using my abilities.  I might have strained something."  He leaned back across the bed, his back against the wall.  "I know what you mean, humanity is not something I truly have faith in, and the more I get to know about our alien brothers the more I see us in them.  If we cannot trust each other, we cannot trust them either."

She had drunk almost twice as many as him, and it was starting to show.  "I grew up in northern Canada, and where I grew up, you never saw an alien, not until later when they learned about vacations.  I mean, I really did not work with them until I was in the military."  He took another drink and rolled a little to his side fishing out a data pad and pulling up some pictures of people.  "Here, this is my family, I am one of five, and that is my mom."  He flipped the screen to show a white woman dressed all as a Native American Shaman.  "She was always into that sort of stuff.  Believed in spirits and astral projection and all that.  I have to hand it to her, she was part right.  I do not know about spirit guides and ghosts and such, but we do have the potential for extraordinary powers."

He turned looking at Irina.  "You have family?"

Irina lay down on the bed. She took the pillow, and curling up around it. With her head nuzzled in the soft folds she sighed contentedly. Her posture combined with her small stature meant she only took up the top half of the bed. Laying there Irina found herself staring up at Justice. Her eyes softened a little as she watched him suffer thought the pain. "It can be very bad when you strain that particular part. Maybe you should see doctor?" She suggested.

"I too didn't meet my first angel until after I joined the ESN. They where not very popular in Russian. Always we talked about what they had done to us. What they were still doing to us. How it was all their fault," Irina said in a dark, and brooding tone. "Truth is they have a lot to answer for, but we Russians have a few wrongs of our own. I mean even after everything we've learned. There are still those of us so blinded by hate we can't see the demons for the danger they are. When I realized that it stopped being they, and started being he, or she. They aren't bad, because he, or she make mistakes. That goes for us, and them. True with some species you have to wade through more shit to find the good than with others."

Without thinking Irina reached for the data pad with her right hand. When the error dawned on her she looked away, and tucked her right arm under the pillow. Then she took the data pad, and held it close as she studied the pictures. "I think I understand now why you are named Justice Lanceheart. It is... unconventional name. It makes sense that your mother would also be unconventional," Irina said as she handed back the data pad.

"I do have family. Here," Irina said as she lay her left leg in Justice's lap. On her leg was a portrait of a woman, and a young man. The edges had been done to make it look like the portrait was tearing itself out of her flesh, and the words любви вечной had been written in an elegant script along the bottom. "My mother Ivanova, and my brother Alexei. They're both still back on Earth. We talk when we can, but over such distances it can be hard," She said her gaze drifting up to the ceiling. "I didn't know my father well, but given how he's doing life without the possibility for parole. It's probably for the best, da?" While the portrait occupied a clearly defined space, the skin around it was a different story. It was littered with Savage, and rowdy tattoos that almost seemed like they where jostling with it's neighbors for space. Among them One in particular stood out. A solitary pink, and white unicorn. It was just above her ankle, and on close inspection Justice could see the lines where rough, the color more uneven then those around it.

He nodded as she spoke, looking at the tattoo on her leg.  He touched the faces in the picture she had artfully done.  “I once met a Salish who had tattoos all over his body, not like this thought.  They were all tribal and stuff.”  He looked up at Irina.  “I guess you had a very different life experience growing up then I did.  My father died when I was still a kid.  My mother raised me and my brothers and sisters.  They all still live in the little town in Canada.”

“It is nice you have family here.  It would be nice to have some of mine.  Someone to talk to when things are bad.”  He tapped the unicorn on her ankle.  “So, who did this one?”

"Da, I guarantee we had very different childhoods. I like that thought. If I had stayed in St Petersburg I wouldn't have meet half the kind of people I have in the service. While there are a few I wish I hadn't meet, for the most part I enjoy it," Irina said. "So what happened to your father?"

"Strictly speaking Kat, and I aren't sisters. We've just been through so much together it's hard for us not to think of each other that way. Having Kat here is nice, but..." Irina sighed, "She practically gave me heart attack today. I'm glad I can be there for here, especially after what she's been through. It's hard to see her in these tough spots thought."

"Which one?" Irina asked as she craned her neck to look at where justice was tapping. "Oh Celestia. That is very special tattoo. It was my first. A... a friend did it for me as a birthday present when I turned fourteen."

The smile on his face was a slightly bit roguish for him.  "I thought it was something like that.   Does not look nearly as professional as these others."

He set his beer down at the end of the bed.  "As for what happened to my father, it was a car accident."  He said while looking down at the art on Irina’s leg.  He took a moment to outline one of the tattoos with his fingertip.  "One of the risks in a tourist town is that people cut loose, get drunk, and act like they normally would not.  He was driving home one night, and got hit by some kids from the UK."  He shrugged.  "Not much to tell about it really, one day he is there, next he is gone."

"I was really young at the time, so, my memories of him are kind of a blur.  I remember more smells and sounds, his voice was deep."  He paused and picked up his beer again.

"So your sister gave you a scare?"  He said and the smile was back again and he leaned back looking up at Irina.  "What position does she have on the ship?"

"Quite it, that tickles!" She said between fits of giggles. Before playfully slapping at Justice's hand. Sitting up Irina fixed him in a mock gaze of anger. Only when she reached past him she grab one of the few remaining beers did she break into a smile. Laying back down Irina listened to Justice talk about his father. While occasionally partaking form her beer.

"You know when we first meet I took you for just another psyop screwball," Irina said. "I am a little surprised at how normal you are. Well, besides the whole telepathy thing."

"To my eternal shame as a ground pounder Kat became a pilot," She paused clearly considering her next words. "She got shot down on Astra. Heard about it while I was back in the shuttle. Apparently it was pretty close call getting her out," Irina explained.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:30, Thu 15 Aug 2013.

He smiled at her laugh.  "That is interesting, you sound like a girl when you laugh."  He looked up from her leg and sipped his beer.  "I mean no disrespect, but it is not as if you are embracing your inner girl.  When we first met, I expected you to be a bit…"  He paused, looking for the right words.  "… angry.  I sensed a deeper current of fury inside you, rage.  Like just under the surface of you there is a clawing gnashing beast waiting to get unchained.  I had some fear you were not in control of it, but after seeing you fight, I understand it is controlled, and let loose when you go to fight."

He took another sip.  "Trust me; I am a screwball, just not the same kind, more like the normal kind."  He said and looked back down at her leg.  "We are lucky your sister is safe.  I would suspect you would be tearing the demons apart if anything had happened to her."

Irina placed her foot squarely on Justices chest, and shoved. "So just, because I enjoy the occasional bar fight means I'm not lady like?" Irina asked in a tone that made it crystal clear what his answer aught to be. "I don't need to dress in pink, and obsess about split ends to be a woman. I've got a pair of ovaries," She said laying a hand on her crotch. "As far as I'm concerned that makes everything I do girly. It's not my problem society confuses being a woman with being a fucking pansy."

"As for the fact that I can be a violent bitch," Irina paused to stifle a yawn. "I've been trying to behave myself of late. It doesn't make for a good impression if you get thrown into the brig during your first six months in a unit. I learned a long time ago my actions come with consequences. So yes, I do try to keep it in check. Still half the reason I joined the marines is so I can have an outlet. Isn't always enough though. You know I use to be a sergeant. I only had it on a month when I decked an ensign in the middle of the mess," Irina said as she fought the weight of her eyelids.

Hershel was stumbling down the hall almost tripping with every step. he had bumped the hall way a few times making a noticeable thud each time. when he was close to where his bunk was he now had a new problem, he was too drunk to remember which exact door, his vision was to blurry to read anything and he was to prideful to ask for help.

he then took a guess as to which door led to his bunk...He guess wrong. He opened the door using the door to prop him up. he had seen two blurry figures of Justice and Irina, which he could not identify but he knew enough to know he was in the wrong room. he then mumbled something that was to jumbled up to be considered English, however the words "wrong room" and "Damn it" were recognizable.

After a brief second of mumbling something and letting his head flail about reveling how drunk he really was he closed the door as he left, then fell hard to the ground making a smack louder than his crashes. If he were not drunk the pain of the burns he suffered earlier would be sharply stinging him right now. he then got to his feet and opened another door, this time he was in the right room. a blurry round object on his bunk in the room gave it away, it was an empty can of coyote moist snuff. he then moved over the bunk and let gravity do the rest, falling into the bed. he then positioned himself and relaxed not quite ready to sleep off the "drunkenness".

Hershel could no longer stay awake as he fell into a drunken slumber. he was in his bunk upside down on top of his blanket and had kicked his pillow to the ground. after a few short minutes he was passed out.

*Flashback/dream*

Hershel arrived at the rendezvous site in a deserted dock at midnight and waited for the rest of his Militia to show up, around 15 minutes later.
Alright everyone. I called you all here tonight because we have a problem on our hands. My sources, which I'm not at liberty of giving out tell me there is a pro demon group of around 100 strong has a stronghold 20 miles from here. Until this point we have stayed clear from this demonic and angelic war going on but circumstances have changed. they have a dirty bomb, a large one ready to be deployed and let off within a city. We don't know which city but we know the bomb is here and these bastards plan on killing civilians.

Hershel then looked around to make sure everyone was listening, and was pleased to see everyone was.

At this moment, we are the only ones in any position to stop this massacre. Not even the US government knows. we know because they tried to recruit other people like us indirectly. I'm not going to lie, the odds are against us but I've taken an oath to protect my people from all enemies foreign and domestic, and Ill be damned if I don't do all I can to keep my oath. If anyone would like to back out, I wont hold it against you, but please do it now so I know what we have to work with.

The other guys looked at each other but no one moved or said anything until one spoke up.When have we ever fought with the odds not against us? everyone laugh a shallow laugh including Grizwalt himself.

Alright, I need three volunteers for squad leaders

He smirked, the thought of her laying out some poor kid because he said the wrong thing seemed fitting for her.  "I see.  Well, I do not know that stifling it is the best solution, perhaps you just need another outlet?"  He said looking up at her as she seemed to get comfortable in her bed.  "Perhaps it is not enough because you are not getting to the root of the cause?"  He said softly and finished the last beer.

He was feeling the drunken haze as well, but it was a soft buzz, made the whole world willowy and easy to understand.  He leaned back and looked across the room.  "I have not fucked anyone since I was in school, collage."  He clarified the last part and looked at her.  "I do not know why I am telling you this, perhaps because I understand the frustration."  He took a deep breath and started to lift her leg.  He suddenly felt very aware of just how unaware he was of where the limits were.  He was going to try to stand and get out before he started talking like a real drunk.

-----> From Rec Dec

It took a while for Zob to locate his new quarters but when he did he opened the door and quickly locked it behind him, turning around he looked around the room at what was available to him... everything was fairly standard except for a few things that stood out amongst the rest of the stuff a large flower box and a datapad sitting on the bed along with his new ESN marine uniform.



Zob then erased the message on the datapad and opened the flower box it was filled to the brim with dozens of red roses, moving them off to the side revealed the true prize underneath his old Largran hard ammo sniper rifle and handgun along with 200 in credit chips.

Zob took the credit chips and put the roses back into the box and slid it underneath his bed out of sight until he would need it again, 'This is gonna come in handy this far out in demon territory... *Sigh* i'm on my own out here for the most part so i should try and secure what i can to better my chances of getting out of this mess alive... first things first learn the layout of this ship' he thought to himself as he scanned his datapad for a public layout map of the ship and looked for anything that could be considered 'out of the ordinary'.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:09, Thu 22 Aug 2013.

"Oh please, don't start the psychoanalysis analysis shit now," Irina said as she nuzzled her pillow, "I am what I am. It has nothing to do with daddy not being there, or not getting enough hugs as a kid. People who hide behind that crap are cowards who can't admit their own problems. Besides it's not like I'm ashamed of what I am. Hell I like it. I just know hard I can yank on the chain."

Justice found Irina's leg would not yield when he tried to move it. "No a man usually mentions that kind of thing when he's horny, and thinks he has a chance of rectifying his problem," Irina stated. Her icy calm barely wavered, despite the effort of hold back laughter. "Which is understandable. Given different circumstances you might have had a chance of convincing me to help you with that. Unfortunately you have two problems conspiring against you. The first being I'm really not in the mood tonight. Second I try to avoid fucking anyone who might wind up watching my back in a firefight." Irina rolled over, and looked right into Justices baby blue eyes. There was a long moment spent like that before she finally pulled her leg back to her chest. "What I can do is be your wingman when we hit Fuji. Follow me, avoid being a complete idiot, and I aught to be able to get you laid. Hell you..."

Irina's next words hung unspoken in the ether as she watched Hershel stumbled into, and then out of her quarters. When her gaze returned to Justice it was noticeably steelier. "Next time lock my door when you're the last one through. You might also want to make sure he doesn't drown in his own vomit. I've reached the point where I'm to tired to give a shit," She said before promptly pulling the covers up.

Zob sat there and studied the layout of the ship for a good while on the datapad until he decided to go see it first hand and pick up a few more miscellaneous supplies on the way.

Zob put the business suit away then donned the official ESN marine uniform, reaching into the flower box he grabs his Largran hard ammo handgun and attaches a silencer to it before holstering it on his person along with the demon boarding knife he smuggled back from the Verg, then made his way out the door locking it behind him and making for the elevator as he was about to push the button for some odd reason the com he was using started buzzing with a incoming message about an angel elite...

Then he realized that during his drinking he must of taken one of Greer's by accident but he couldn't ignore the message even if it wasn't for him so he entered the elevator and decided to start the search for this rogue angel elite... after all there could be a nice reward involved if Zob could bring the guy in alive and the thought of putting an elite to the test was something that brought a smile to his face.

----> To Hanger Dec 2
This message was last edited by the player at 05:57, Fri 23 Aug 2013.